A multimillion-dollar California Lottery win turned awkward after the agency accidentally blasted the winner’s home address to newsrooms instead of the store that sold the ticket, briefly exposing the player’s location before officials scrambled to fix the mistake.
In a press release emailed to media outlets, the California Lottery swapped in a residential address where the retailer’s information should have been, then rushed out a corrected version. The slip-up has revived questions about how carefully state agencies guard the privacy of lottery winners who suddenly find themselves very interesting to strangers.
Winner, Ticket And The Retailer
The winner was identified as Raul Servellon de Leo, who matched the November 29, 2025 SuperLotto Plus drawing to claim roughly $12 million, and the ticket was sold at King Wine & Liquor 2 on Fruitridge Road in Sacramento, as reported by New York Post. Lottery Post reports the original release mistakenly listed a residential address and that the Lottery later corrected and redistributed the materials to show the retailer address, 2346 Fruitridge Road.
Lottery Response And Correction
The California Lottery said the erroneous release went only to media outlets, roughly 800 addresses, and that staff contacted newsrooms after discovering the mistake, according to Lottery Post. "Protecting player privacy and ensuring accurate information are top priorities for the California Lottery," the agency said, adding, "This has never happened for the California Lottery, and we are reviewing our protocols to ensure this doesn't occur again." Officials said they updated and redistributed the release to reflect the correct retailer information.
What California Law Allows And What It Doesn't
The California Lottery's Winner's Handbook explains that a winner's full name, the retailer that sold the ticket, the date of the win and the prize amount are public record, but that "the Lottery will not disclose any other personal or identifying information without your permission," according to the agency's guidance. The handbook also lists contact numbers and procedures for winners and advises caution about third‑party solicitations, underscoring why residential addresses are generally treated as off-limits. The California Lottery Winner's Handbook is the source for those rules.
Local Fallout And Legal Questions
Privacy advocates and legal observers warn that accidental disclosures like this can open the door to scams, unwanted solicitations or safety worries for the person named, and could potentially give rise to civil claims depending on any demonstrable harm, as industry coverage notes. La Opinión reports the Lottery confirmed to a Fox affiliate that the address in the original release matched the winner's home, and gaming outlets have flagged possible legal exposure for the agency, with Casino.org reporting that litigation could be on the table even if any remedies remain uncertain. For now, officials say they are reviewing internal procedures and urging newsrooms and the public to rely on the corrected materials.
